This invention relates generally to molds, and more particularly, to molds capable of forming a multi-component product having a surface with a plurality of protuberances or indentations.
Multi-component molded products have become very popular. In a typical molded product, a form or mold cavity is constructed such that the empty space inside the cavity corresponds to the shape of the desired product. Thereafter, molten material, such as plastic, is injected into the cavity, and allowed to cure. In a multi-component mold system, additional components can be added in similar additional stages.
A typical multi-component mold system of the prior art is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,386,849 which is incorporated herein by this reference in its entirety. Such multi-component system has a turret with multiple pairs of product connection units disposed on opposite sides of the turret. Each product connector is sized and dimensioned to fit into a first mold cavity located proximate to it. After the first components are molded, the turret is rotated 180xc2x0 and each product connector is inserted into a second mold cavity, after which the molding of the second component occurs. Only the turret, but not the individual product connectors, is capable of rotating about its axis.
The problem with such multi-component mold systems of the prior art is that they may not be easily useable to make certain commonly manufactured products. Where the products have surfaces with protuberances or indentations, a typical multi-component system such as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 6,386,849 may require additional mechanisms to facilitate the withdrawal of the products from the mold. This situation arises when the protuberances and indentations of the product and of the mold cavity are oriented such that the latter is not able to open without destroying the finished product. The required additional mechanisms use typically complex sliding mechanisms to relieve the entanglement between the protuberances and indentations of the mold cavity and of the finished product. An example of a typical slide mechanism is shown in FIG. 3. Such slide mechanisms are expensive to construct and maintain and add to the cost of the manufacturing of products.
Accordingly, there is a need for a multi-component mold system which avoids these problems with the prior artxe2x80x94in an efficient and relatively inexpensive manner.
The invention satisfies this need. The invention is an apparatus for making multi-component products. The apparatus comprises (a) an elongate turret having a front side, an opposed rear side and a longitudinal axis, (b) a plurality of elongate product connector pairs, each product connector pair comprising a longitudinal axis, each product connector pair further comprising a forward product connector on the front side of the turret and a rearward product connector on the rear side of the turret, the forward product connector and the rearward product connector being disposed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the turret, each of the product connectors being rotatable about its longitudinal axis, the amount of rotation being between about 10xc2x0 and about 360xc2x0, (c) at least one bearing for permitting the rotation of the turret, (d) a first mold disposed proximate to the turret, the first mold defining a plurality of first mold cavities, each first mold cavity being aligned with a product connector on the turret and each first mold cavity being sized and dimensioned to shape the exterior surface of the first molded portion of the product, the first mold being separable along a first mold separation plane which bisects each of the first mold cavities within the first mold, and (e) a second mold disposed proximate to the turret and opposite the turret from the first mold, the second mold defining a plurality of second mold cavities, each second mold cavity being aligned with a product connector on the turret and each second mold cavity being sized and dimensioned to shape the exterior surface of the second molded portion of the product, the second mold being separable along a second mold separation plane which bisects each of the second mold cavities within the second mold.